Germany really did seem keen on an electric future, as not only was BMW developing an EV but also DAUG, an R&D firm owned 50:50 by Mercedes and Volkswagen, was conducting the world’s largest EV field trial to date. Residents of Rügen, a 358m2island in the Baltic Sea, were loaned cars, vans, buses and pick-ups, in which were four types of battery. Opel’s Astra Estate proved the best, but all the EVs had a short range (around 40-60 miles) and long charging times (six miles per hour). Things have certainly improved since then.